The first time J.T. Barrett recalls meeting Tulsa head coach Philip Montgomery was way back during Barrett’s junior year of high school. At the time, Montgomery was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Baylor and Barrett was a rising four-star prospect three hours to the north at Rider High School in the town of Wichita Falls, Texas.
“I talked to [Montgomery] a couple times,” Barrett said Monday. “I went to Baylor’s Junior Day and sat down and talked to them.”
The conversations were like any during the recruiting process. The Baylor coaches explained how they viewed Barrett as a fit in their spread offense. With Barrett’s dual-threat ability, it seemed like a solid match.
Barrett, who is now in his fourth year at Ohio State, said he liked that type of high-powered offense. But even though the Bears actually offered him a scholarship before the Buckeyes, and were only a short drive from his hometown, he wound up in Columbus, Ohio.
The reason for that, Barrett said, was simple.
“I was thinking about the whole Baylor system, like I really liked their offense,” Barrett recalled. “But as far as winning a national championship, that’s all I wanted to do, and I didn’t see that happening at Baylor.
“That’s why I came here.”
Things will somewhat come full circle again Saturday when Barrett and his Buckeyes welcome Montgomery and the Golden Hurricane to Ohio Stadium for a 3:30 p.m. matchup. Montgomery spent seven years as an assistant at Baylor under Art Briles before becoming the head coach at Tulsa prior to the 2015 season.
Montgomery said he’s looking forward to the opportunity to coach against a player he once tried to recruit.
“J.T. is a good player,” he told reporters Tuesday. “I recruited him in high school, got a chance to know him a little bit. He’s an exceptional young man and really takes it seriously about being a quarterback.”
Barrett’s 2016 debut reminded Ohio State fans of the 2014 version when he finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting. It also likely gave Montgomery flashbacks to why he tried to lure Barrett to Baylor during the recruiting process.
The Buckeyes’ offense racked up a school record 776 yards in a 77-10 rout of Bowling Green. Barrett was responsible for seven touchdowns — six passing, one rushing — and he completed 21-of-31 passes for a career-high 349 yards.
“He played extremely well the other day,” Montgomery said. “He got them in and out of plays, got them in and out of situations and threw the ball very effectively. He’s a dual-threat guy. He’s a guy that can pull it down and hurt you with his feet just as well as he can his arm.”
Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer echoed those comments on Barrett’s performance.
“He played outstanding other than the first miscue,” Meyer said. “He’s really playing quarterback.”
Montgomery is well-aware of that and has been for some time now. After all, when at Baylor, he was one of the first Power Five programs to offer Barrett a scholarship.
Their paths will cross again Saturday for the first time since those high school days.
